AuthorTopic: Is this a sales platform or a serious forum (Read 4339 times)

I keep butting up against forum posts which are nothing other than straight forward sales pitches for products or services. The most recent is the post about the Wine Country Filter System. Whilst it may be appropriate for a commercial organisation to respond to a favourable or unfavourable comment or review I really do not think that this platform should be used as a free advertising channel for commercial companies. I didn't mind too much when it was just one or two but now LuLa seems to becoming polluted with articles and forum posts which are blatantly just a sales pitch.

My observation is that the pollution you refer to is spam - not LuLa policy. As members, when we see such posts that have nothing to do with photography or where photography is a thin veil for something else, we should bring them to Management's attention. They are usually promptly deleted and the poster banned.

Of course sometimes we as members may bring certain new photographic products or services to the community's attention if we think they have particular merit that could be of general interest. That kind of post seems to me to be legitimate.

I think David may be talking about this Wine Country thread? The vendor certainly began the thread earlier this year, though did it coincide with an article? Not sure, but recent posts are by members. So why not identify exactly which posts you mean, David?

We keep our eyes on as many posts as we can. Sometimes spam type of posts makes it through. it's a lot of effort for a spammer to do and we usually have them banned and shut down within a few hours depending on the time of day. If there is something you object to then use the notify button. We'll review it and take action. As far as Wine Country Filter, that forum topic started when we did a review on the product. I have no issues when that happens. Also, as you know many of our readers make posts about new products. I have no issue with that either.

Thank you for the feedback. I was actually referring to the Wine Country post as an example of an increase (in my opinion) in the number of blatant or indirect sales pitches. On reflection I think this may be no different to what is happening everywhere as organisations seek to use social media as a platform to get their message across. It just seems that some groups are better at this than others.

The difficulty for me perhaps is that I have found LuLa reviews and the forum a useful and helpful guide to choosing and using equipment and software on the basis that there were opinions, facts and occasionally a declared bias but little spin. In other words I trusted what I was reading. Nowadays I guess that there are few areas of the printed, visual or social media which are not susceptible to manipulation - it just rankles a bit but that may just be me.

Thank you for the feedback. I was actually referring to the Wine Country post as an example of an increase (in my opinion) in the number of blatant or indirect sales pitches. On reflection I think this may be no different to what is happening everywhere as organisations seek to use social media as a platform to get their message across. It just seems that some groups are better at this than others.

The difficulty for me perhaps is that I have found LuLa reviews and the forum a useful and helpful guide to choosing and using equipment and software on the basis that there were opinions, facts and occasionally a declared bias but little spin. In other words I trusted what I was reading. Nowadays I guess that there are few areas of the printed, visual or social media which are not susceptible to manipulation - it just rankles a bit but that may just be me.

Eh? It's a forum post - not an article. You get the same level of independent articles as always.

It was a forum post. Meaning, it's open for debate. I have no problem if it is a "blatant sales pitch." If it is, it will be demonstrated in the debate and the product would be either lauded or shamed. I am not talking about shills, and those would be exposed in the debate as such, or the thread would be deleted by moderators. I am talking about reputable forum members who clearly and openly state their connection to the product and/or bias. Wouldn't we all want a more knowledgeable salesman when we need something?

I keep butting up against forum posts which are nothing other than straight forward sales pitches for products or services.

Really ??I've been on Lula for quite a while now and have found it remarkably free of spam or blatant adverts.When I do see one I report it via the "report to moderator" option and it gets pulled very fast. The moderators generally do an excellent job of keeping this forum running smoothly.

A few members do mention services they offer in relevant threads, but it's always in a helpful way.

Well it was just an opinion and I did not mean to raise anyone's hackles. I suppose I am out of touch with the way social media (and I guess that sort of includes the LuLa forum) works as I don't use Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram or Youtube myself. In fact I sent an email to my 18 year old nephew only to be told by his mother that he uses Snapchat and not email anymore. I have just got used to email myself as a regular way to contact people. I live in a sleepy part of the English countryside and I guess I am just being a little old-fashioned about all of this. When I read an English paper I expect to see advertising as advertising, editorial as just that, letters as just letters and so on but that does not always happen. Everyone has an agenda, a spin or an edge and it is kind of hard to see the truth in anything nowadays particularly with our politicians and that goes for everywhere nowadays - the EU, the USA and of course here in the UK - and these are the good guys.

Every day, Slobodan, every day. I pick up my copy of The Times first thing in the morning; I do the sudoku and similar puzzles over lunch, I read the news, comment and letters in the evening and I finish of the day with the crossword. On holiday, when I have to read it on an iPad, I feel bereft (but then, I hated its change to tabloid size, too).

I suppose I'm just old-fashioned. Apart from my love of computers, programming and digital photography, of course.

I don't always put smileys at the end, but that was a tongue-in-cheek comment. Well, kind of 😊

The only time I now read a paper paper is in airplanes, when I get them for free and have nothing better to do. Oh, wait, that's only in business class... and international flights. Oh, man! It's been a while since I had that privilege

Having said that, I did grow up starting the day with a newspaper, the way you discribed. I still remember those stained fingers from the paper ink.

Every day, Slobodan, every day. I pick up my copy of The Times first thing in the morning; I do the sudoku and similar puzzles over lunch, I read the news, comment and letters in the evening and I finish of the day with the crossword. On holiday, when I have to read it on an iPad, I feel bereft (but then, I hated its change to tabloid size, too).

I suppose I'm just old-fashioned. Apart from my love of computers, programming and digital photography, of course.

I don't always put smileys at the end, but that was a tongue-in-cheek comment. Well, kind of 😊

The only time I now read a paper paper is in airplanes, when I get them for free and have nothing better to do. Oh, wait, that's only in business class... and international flights. Oh, man! It's been a while since I had that privilege

Having said that, I did grow up starting the day with a newspaper, the way you discribed. I still remember those stained fingers from the paper ink.

Then you must have read the Sunday Times too! When we used to buy it here it cost €5, and not only the fingers but also the terrace chairs and tables always went black. I loved AA Gill and Michael Winner; miss 'em all. Oddly enough, even Jeremy Clarkson was a far more interesting and amusing writer there, than the character he invented for himself on tv just in order to become very rich indeed. Which considering what most of us have to do to survive (okay; let's exclude accountants, if you insist ;-) ) might not have been such a silly thing to do. At least I don't thnk he ever said he wanted to become a professional photographer. But, given the fame and the name, that he'd have succeeded lies beyond questionable doubt.